India, Sweden to further use of renewables to fight climate change

India, the world’s third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has committed itself to an increased clean energy share by 40 % by 2022 and thus this visit is not only timely - but also necessary.

NEW DELHI: Sweden, one of the top 20 investors in India, is keen to partner Delhi to further the goal of use of renewables to combat challenges of climate change in keeping with the Paris Accord.

Eva Svedling, State Secretary for Climate Policy, Sweden was recently in India with an aim to strengthen ties in the area of climate change.

"The visit is aimed at strengthening dialogue, cooperation and exchange of best practices between India and Sweden in climate change policy and environment solutions. The Visit is a follow up to the joint statement by Prime Minister Stefan Löfvén and Prime Minister Modi and its implementation, including in the areas of climate change, environment, Agenda 2030 and the sustainable development goals," Svedling told ET.

Svedling said she explored areas for collaboration under bilateral MoU on environment, MoU on renewable energy cooperation and the MoU on sustainable urban development.

The main aim of her visit was to discuss climate policy and potential collaboration with Maharashtra on climate change and sustainable environmental solutions.

Sweden is introducing a new climate law promising zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045 and a 70 % cut to emissions in the domestic transport sector by 2030, effective 1 January 2018, the visitng official said.

With a strong commitment to the Paris Agreement (COP 21), Sweden is already one of the most climate change-conscious and sustainable countries in the world. India, the world’s third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has committed itself to an increased clean energy share by 40 % by 2022 and thus this visit is not only timely - but also necessary.

In Mumbai she visited Deonar, where the Deputy Minister meet with female workers & volunteers of Stree Mukti Sanghatana (SMS), a non-governmental organization engaged in creating awareness among local housing society residents about segregation of waste at source and producing manure from this process. This procedure of decentralized processing of waste saves a lot of energy, which is otherwise utilized in transporting waste to central dumping yards.

Further to this, Svedling also visited the biogas plant at the Welingkar Institute of Management, which is installed by a Swedish company Cleantech - FOV biogas. The unit uses the wet waste generated in the cafeteria to produce clean energy, which cater to a part of its energy requirement.

Svedling also rode on a Volvo hybrid city bus, which operates in Navi-Mumbai and is environment friendly and has given fuel savings of up to 40 % in real operating conditions.

In Delhi Svedling met with high ranking government officials and participated in the India Trilateral Forum (ITF) -conference.

The ITF is an initiative by the German Marshall Fund of the United States and the Observer Research Foundation, supported by the Swedish Foreign Ministry. The purpose of the conference is to discuss global and Indian challenges today among officials, academia, think-tanks and business representatives from India, the US and Europe.

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